Well, it looks like the All Blacks have clinched & retained our Rugby Championship title just before we played against Argentina at Buenos Aires after a nail biting draw between the Springboks & the Wallabies over in Bloemfontein but the All Blacks ran out comfortable winners against Argentina in the end, so here is the full match commentary of the game (And yeah, I am always a die-hard rugby fanatic & this is my 1st blog of the new month of October so Pops is still away in Oz):
Welcome to Estadio Jose Amalfitani for the match between Argentina and New Zealand.
1ST MINUTE, 1ST HALF: The All Blacks kick off and we are under way.
2ND MINUTE (1 MINUTE LATER): The Pumas have not had a great run of form, going into this game.
4TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER), PENALTY GOAL ALL BLACKS: (Beauden Barrett) 0-3 NZ - Barrett takes the penalty kick after a silly penalty by the Pumas. He guides it through to score the first points of the day.
5TH MINUTE (1 MINUTE LATER), PENALTY GOAL ARGENTINA: (Nicolas Sanchez) 3-3 - The Pumas take it into attack pretty quickly on the counter and they are awarded a penalty after some sloppy play from the All Blacks. Sanchez takes the kick and he levels the scores.
7TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER), TRY ALL BLACKS: (Kieran Read) 3-8 NZ - Read runs along the sideline, as Naholo releases the ball over to him. Read shrugs the tackle to ground the ball over the line.
8TH MINUTE (1 MINUTE LATER), MISSED CONVERSION ALL BLACKS: Barrett kicks it across the face of goal, failing to add the extra points for the All Blacks.
10TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): It has been a quick fire start from the All Blacks, who have been quick to add to the scoreboard.
12TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): It has been a bit of a scramble in the last couple of minutes, with both teams wrestling for possession of the ball.
14TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): The All Blacks have been spending a lot of time inside their forward half without any reward on the scoreboard.
16TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): The mistakes are coming through thick and fast for the Pumas.
17TH MINUTE (1 MINUTE LATER), TRY ALL BLACKS: (Damian McKenzie) 3-13 NZ - A penalty is paid to the All Blacks, they play on instantly as McKenzie hops over the line under the uprights for a try.
18TH MINUTE (1 MINUTE LATER), CONVERSION ALL BLACKS: (Beauden Barrett) 3-15 NZ - Barrett takes an easy kick on goal and picks up the extra points.
20TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER), TRY ALL BLACKS: (Waisake Naholo) 3-20 NZ - Barrett breaks one tackle, then another, as he flicks it over to Naholo, who runs the ball over the line, running to the middle to ground it past the middle of the uprights.
21ST MINUTE (1 MINUTE LATER), CONVERSION ALL BLACKS: (Beauden Barrett) 3-22 NZ - Barrett kicks it through for the easy points and the All Blacks are really starting to dominate.
22ND MINUTE (1 MINUTE LATER), YELLOW CARD ARGENTINA: Tomas Lavinini is awarded a yellow card after a high attempt of a tackle. The job just gets that little bit harder for the Pumas.
24TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): The All Blacks aren't able to secure their own line out, close to the line.
26TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER), TRY ALL BLACKS: (Kieran Read) 3-27 NZ - McKenzie puts on the after burners, as he gives the ball over to Read, to score a try beside the uprights.
28TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER), CONVERSION ALL BLACKS: (Beauden Barrett) 3-29 NZ - Barrett squeezes it through, going just inside the left upright.
30TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): Here come the All Blacks again, as they pass the ball around their attacking half. This could be very dangerous for the Pumas.
32ND MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): The Pumas just need to score something before half time, just to give them a shot of confidence.
34TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): A slight delay as Hames is attended to by the trainers. He seems to be fit to continue.
36TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): Argentina have done well in the last few minutes, as they haven't conceded any more points.
38TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER), YELLOW CARD ALL BLACKS: Matt Todd has been sin binned, after a rough tackle. The All Blacks now have a turn with only having 14 on the field.
40TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): Argentina have a golden opportunity to score a try deep inside their attacking half.
HALF TIME: The whistle sounds for half time and the All Blacks go into the break holding a 29-3 lead over the Pumas.
41ST MINUTE, 2ND HALF: Argentina kick off to get us back under way for the second half.
42ND MINUTE (1 MINUTE LATER): Play is held up once again, as the trainers attend to Barrett, he looks to be fine to continue in the game.
44TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): Argentina continue their good patch of form, from late in the first half.
46TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): The All Blacks force the turnover from deep inside the Pumas attacking half. The All Blacks are away.
48TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): Lavanini attempts to force his way over the try line, but the ball is lost forward over the line. So close, but yet so far away for the Pumas.
50TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER), YELLOW CARD ALL BLACKS: It appears that Read is in a lot of trouble hear, as he puts in a high tackle, with direct contact to the head. He is awarded a yellow card by the ref.
52ND MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): Barrett takes possession of the ball in the middle of the ground and he kicks it into touch.
54TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER), TRY ARGENTINA: (Juan Manuel Leguizamon) 8-29 NZ - Leguizamon manages to to wrangle his way down inside the pack as he looks to have grounded the ball. The ref sends it to the video ref and he confims it is a try.
55TH MINUTE (1 MINUTE LATER), CONVERSION ARGENTINA: (Nicolas Sanchez) 10-29 NZ - Sanchez kicks it through for the extras as the Pumas are finally getting some reward for the effort.
57TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): The All Blacks have gone quiet, as they have not scored in just under 30 minutes of the match.
59TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): The Pumas are on the better side of the penalty count, for the first time in the rugby championship.
61ST MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): Naholo takes the pass from Taylor along the sideline, he runs in and scores a try in the corner. The ref sends it upstairs and the TMO rules that the Taylor pass was forward. No try.
63RD MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): Argentina are still having the better of the All Blacks at the moment, but they are not scoring quick enough to concern the All Blacks.
65TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): Fifita gets up gingerly from the pack and he limps around. He doesn't look too bad.
67TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER), YELLOW CARD ARGENTINA: Ramiro Herrera has been sent off with a yellow card after an over eager tackle attempt.
69TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): The error count continues to increase for both teams, as fatigue starts to affect both teams.
71ST MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): Havili makes his international debut for the All Blacks, after plying his trade with the Tasman Makos in the Mitre 10 Cup.
73RD MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): The game is predominantly being played in the middle of the ground, with neither side looking like they can score at the moment.
75TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): Havili with a scintillating break from the middle. He is starting to show the big boys that he belongs in this team.
77TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): There is still time left on the clock for a late consolation try for Argentina, if they are good enough.
79TH MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER): The All Blacks push it into attack, as they look to add more points to their score line.
80TH MINUTE (1 MINUTE LATER): Play is held up as Lezana is helped off the ground.
80TH MINUTE + 1ST MINUTE (1 MINUTE LATER), TRY ALL BLACKS: (David Kaetau Havili) 10-34 NZ - Havili with a slick run to score a try in the corner on debut for the All Blacks.
80TH MINUTE + 3RD MINUTE (2 MINUTES LATER), CONVERSION ALL BLACKS: (Beauden Barrett) 10-36 NZ - Barrett kicks it through the middle and that will be the last play of the day.
FULL TIME: The All Blacks run out 26 point winners over the Pumas, after a quickfire start to the game. They faded in the second half, scoring the final try of the match.
And what do I think of the game? There were great tries being scored especially All Black captain Kieran Read getting a double but discipline has been a bit of a letdown as a result so both teams picking up both yellow cards each such as Tomas Lavanini & Ramiro Herrera for Argentina & Matt Todd & Read for the All Blacks (Well let's hope Kieran Read doesn't get suspended just like Malakai Fekitoa did last year (Fekitoa could've been sent off for a high shot on Irish winger Simon Zebo during the test against Ireland last year in Dublin (Not in Chicago because Ireland were the clear favourites to win the match (Well, the Irish managed to break their 111 year stranglehold to register their 1st win against the All Blacks) because the All Blacks had a locking crisis with world class locks Brodie Retallick & Sam Whitelock unavailable due to concussion (Retallick) & injury (Whitelock) as well as Luke Romano who had to be sent home for a family bereavement) under the new laws which resulted in a 1 match ban/suspension therefore Fekitoa wasn't available for selection against France but now he's still playing for Auckland in the Mitre 10 Cup & is no longer playing for both the Highlanders & the All Blacks because he's heading over to France to play for Toulon) because he copped a head high tackle (It's a direct contact to the head but it would've been a penalty only under the old laws) but he was lucky not to get sent off because he only received a yellow but he might've got possibly cited for that one).
And the match between the Springboks & Wallabies at Toyota Stadium in Bloemfontein again ended in a draw resulting the All Blacks to retain the Rugby Championship for another year so here's the news report about the match:
South Africa and Australia could not be separated as they played out a highly entertaining 27-27 draw in Bloemfontein on Saturday.
In a fast-paced and thrilling encounter, in which the lead changed hands several times, both sides gave the ball plenty of air throughout and each team scored three converted tries.
With the All Blacks on course to win the Rugby Championship again, this Test was a shootout for second place in the standings and both sides were competitive throughout although like the corresponding Test in Perth, they had to settle for a share of the spoils.
The Springboks showed their intent from the outset and opted to run the ball from all areas of the field. This tactic seemed to surprise their opponents initially, but the Wallabies adapted quickly and soaked up the early pressure with a solid defensive effort.
And in the 11th minute, the Wallabies caught the Boks by surprise with a brilliant move which saw Israel Folau crossing for the opening try.
This, after an attacking scrum on the edge of South Africa's 22 saw Tevita Kuridrani running a superb dummy line, before Bernard Foley threw an inside pass to the on-rushing Folau, who glided through a huge gap in the Bok back-line before scoring next to the posts.
Foley added the extras, but the Boks were soon camped inside the visitors' 22 and five minutes later, they were rewarded when Ruan Dreyer shrugged off a couple of tacklers before barging over for his first Test try.
Elton Jantjies converted before a Foley penalty in the 23rd minute gave the Wallabies a 10-7 lead but Jantjies restored parity two minutes later with a penalty of his own, after Jack Dempsey was blown up for deliberately knocking down the ball when South Africa were on the attack deep inside Australia's half.
The Wallabies regained the lead in the 35th minute - Foley slotting a penalty after Dreyer was penalised for illegal scrummaging.
Both sides continued to show attacking intent as the half drew to a close, but no further points were scored during this period. Folau was fortunate not to be yellow carded, however, as a rough challenge - in which he pulled Dillyn Leyds by the hair - led to some pushing and shoving off-the-ball between several players, just before the break.
The Boks made a superb start to the second half when, three minutes after the restart, Jan Serfontein crossed for his side's third try after Leyds and Siya Kolisi combined brilliantly in the build-up.
That score meant the Boks held the lead for the first time and although Jantjies slotted the conversion, the Wallabies gave the perfect response shortly afterwards when Foley made a telling break before offloading to Marika Koroibete, who outpaced the cover defence before crossing for his first Test try.
The topsy-turvy nature of this game continued as two minutes later, Serfontein made a telling break before getting a pass out to Courtnall Skosan, who crossed for his side's third try despite the attentions of two defenders.
Five minutes later, the Wallabies struck back - Koroibete rounding off in the left-hand corner after the ball was taken through several phases in the build-up.
Foley showed his class as he calmly slotted the conversion from close to the touchline which meant the Wallabies were now leading 27-24 with just over 20 minutes left on the clock.
The Boks were desperate to strike back and they did just that courtesy of a long range penalty from Jantjies in the 71st minute. That meant the score was level again and although Jantjies had a chance to win the game for the hosts, he pushed a difficult penalty attempt wide of the posts in the dying moments.
And here is the review of round 7 in the 2017 Mitre 10 Cup season:
Week seven action in Mitre 10 Cup rugby has seen Waikato slip into the relegation zone after Counties Manukau and Auckland both managed wins.
They now share 17 points, three more than last-placed Waikato who went down to competition leader Canterbury 37-17 in Saturday's Ranfurly Shield challenge in Christchurch.
Auckland showed some overdue form in securing a four-try bonus point 38-19 win over Bay of Plenty at Eden Park on Saturday while Counties Manukau got up to beat Northland 25-16 at Pukekohe on Sunday afternoon.
It doesn't get any easier for Waikato either as they play North Harbour in the last game of week eight in Hamilton. North Harbour, who beat Hawke's Bay 33-30, also have to face a trip to Palmerston North to play Manawatu on Wednesday. North Harbour are sitting in third place on the ladder with 27 points.
Ahead of them are Canterbury on 35 and Taranaki on 31, the sides to meet in the Ranfurly Shield challenge of the season in Christchurch on Friday evening.
Taranaki warmed up with a 40-26 win over Tasman on Thursday.
In the Championship, Wellington is well out in front on 37 points after their 27-24 win over Otago in Wellington on Sunday. Otago, by virtue of their points differential, hold second place back on 21 points and would be a worthy finalist on the basis of their effort against Wellington.
Manawatu, who beat Southland 25-20 on Saturday, share 21 points and have a game in hand. Northland are in fourth place in spite of their loss to Counties Manukau while Bay of Plenty are two points further back. Manawatu have still to play Counties Manukau, Taranaki and Hawke's Bay. Otago have Southland and Bay of Plenty to play while the Bay side's last game is against Waikato.
Two games in the round allowed Otago fullback in Wellington, Fletcher Smith, to boost his scoring to 111 points. Canterbury's Richie Mo'unga is the only other player to have three figures with 108. Next highest is North Harbour's Bryn Gatland on 91 with Jackson Garden-Bachop from Wellington on 85.
Canterbury's three-quarter Braydon Ennor leads the try scoring list with eight tries while Otago's Jona Nareki has seven. Those with six tries are: Jordan Manihera (Waikato), Ben Lam (Wellington), Vince Aso (Auckland), Tevita Li and Shaun Stevenson (North Harbour), Tim Bateman, Josh McKay and Mitch Drummond (Canterbury).
And the now 20 year old Max Verstappen in the Red Bull has won the last ever Malaysian Grand Prix (Although he hasn't won since Spain last year in which he became the youngest driver to win a Grand Prix at the relatively, young tender age of 18), ending Lewis Hamilton's 3 race winning streak but Hamilton still leads the championship anyway (And Lewis Hamilton was on pole but he lost the lead from Verstappen so he had to settle for 2nd).
So that is my 149th blog of the year 2017 (MMXVII) & my 69th this year.
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